LeBron and the Cavs capture first win

Cleveland, OH (Sports Network) – Darius Miles tied his career-high with 26
points as the Cleveland Cavaliers posted their first win of the season,
111-98, over the Washington Wizards at Gund Arena.

Rookie sensation LeBron James contributed 17 points, nine assists and eight
rebounds for Cleveland, which won for the first time in six games this season.

Ricky Davis also added 26 points and eight boards for the Cavaliers, who
snapped a six-game losing streak to the Wizards. Coming off a late-minute loss
on Friday to Indiana, Cleveland was still able to rebound with a strong fourth
quarter in this contest to earn the win at home.

Jarvis Hayes and Gilbert Arenas each had 22 points in the losing effort for
Washington, which lost for the first time in three games.

The final quarter began with Cleveland holding a slim two-point advantage.

Miles, though, took over the contest early in the final period, leading the
Cavaliers on a 16-3 run. He scored eight straight points during the burst,
helping the home side claim a 92-80 advantage with more than six minutes left
to play.

Miles started his individual spurt with a baseline dunk with 7:32 remaining in
the contest. He then converted on a fastbreak lay-in to give Cleveland an
88-78 lead. After Etan Thomas’ bucket cut the deficit to single digits for
Washington, two Miles jumpers extended the margin to 12 with a little more
than six minutes left.

Washington was never able to seriously threaten as Cleveland led by as many as
16 late in game. The Cavaliers cruised the rest of the way.

A tightly contest first quarter saw Cleveland escape with a slim 25-23 lead
after 12 minutes of play.

Neither team was able to create much breathing room in the second quarter as
well. Cleveland opened the biggest lead of the half at six, 32-26, with just
under nine minutes to play in the half.

Washington, though, did not allow the Cavaliers to increase their margin. In
fact, the Wizards slowly battled back and went into the locker room with a
one-point lead. Larry Hughes led all scorers with 13 points at the half as
Washington took a 47-46 advantage into the break.

The game remained extremely close through three quarters of play, as Cleveland
went into the fourth quarter with a 75-73 edge.